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High heels petition being debated by MPs High heels row: MPs 'shocked' by women's dress code stories
(about 2 hours later)
A petition calling for a ban on forcing women to wear high heels at work is being debated in Parliament. An inquiry into work dress codes has exposed "widespread discrimination" against women, MPs have said.
More than 152,000 people signed the petition set up by Nicola Thorp, from London, after she was sent home from her temp job when she refused to wear shoes with a "2in to 4in heel". The investigation was prompted by a petition, being debated by MPs, that called for a ban on requiring women to wear high heels at work.
It led to an inquiry by MPs, who heard similar stories from hundreds of women and called for the law to be reviewed. MPs said they were "shocked" by stories submitted as part of the inquiry, which included one case of a woman who had been told to dye her hair blonde.
The government has said no employer should discriminate on gender grounds.The government has said no employer should discriminate on gender grounds.
Work dress codes "must be reasonable", it said.Work dress codes "must be reasonable", it said.
A petition is considered for a debate in Parliament if it reaches more than 100,000 signatures. More than 152,000 people signed the petition set up by Nicola Thorp, from London, after she was sent home from her temp job when she refused to wear shoes with a "2in to 4in heel".
The petitions committee, which launched its investigation in June last year, called on the government to review the law and to ask Parliament to change it if necessary, to make it more effective. It is being debating in Parliament because it reached more than 100,000 signatures.
Helen Jones, who chairs the Petitions Committee, said : "It is fair to say that what we found shocked us.
"We found attitudes that belonged more [to the] - I was going to say 1950s but probably the 1850s might be more accurate - than the 21st Century.
"[The inquiry] has exposed widespread discrimination against women, stereotypical views of what women should look like and dress like and behave like.
"It's shown up out-dated attitudes towards women in the workplace, and it has shown that constantly women are belittled when they try to challenge those attitudes."
She said there was a "long way" to go to solve the problems, but "everyone in the workplace deserves better than this".
The committee published its findings in a report in January, which said hundreds of women had shared their stories.
Women had told the committee about the pain and long-term damage caused by wearing high heels for long periods in the workplace, about requirements to wear revealing outfits and to constantly reapply make-up, it said.
It said discriminatory dress codes were "widespread" and the existing law was "not yet fully effective in protecting employees from discrimination at work".
The petitions committee called on the government to review the law and to ask Parliament to change it if necessary, to make it more effective.
It also recommended that the government "substantially increases" the penalties available to employment tribunals to award against employers, including the financial penalties.It also recommended that the government "substantially increases" the penalties available to employment tribunals to award against employers, including the financial penalties.
It said such penalties were not a "sufficient deterrent" to breaking the law.It said such penalties were not a "sufficient deterrent" to breaking the law.
The committee published its findings in a report in January, which said: "The petition was started because of an individual's experience, but it has become clear in the course of our inquiry that this was not an isolated incident - and nor is the problem confined to high heels.
"We heard from hundreds of women who told us about the pain and long-term damage caused by wearing high heels for long periods in the workplace, as well as from women who had been required to dye their hair blonde, to wear revealing outfits and to constantly reapply make-up."
It said discriminatory dress codes were "widespread" and the the existing law was "not yet fully effective in protecting employees from discrimination at work".
The government has previously said: "No employer should discriminate against their workers on grounds of gender.The government has previously said: "No employer should discriminate against their workers on grounds of gender.
"We expect employers to act in accordance with the law, which is clear that dress codes enforced by employers must be reasonable and include equivalent requirements for both men and women."We expect employers to act in accordance with the law, which is clear that dress codes enforced by employers must be reasonable and include equivalent requirements for both men and women.
"We welcome the opportunity to debate this issue, which is clearly of importance to a large number of people.""We welcome the opportunity to debate this issue, which is clearly of importance to a large number of people."
The debate began in the Commons' secondary chamber, Westminster Hall, at 16:30 GMT and could last for more than two hours.